This
site records the First World War experience of Major F W Smith as a
pilot in the British Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and later the Royal Air Force.

Major
Smith volunteered for service in the RFC early in the war. He was
then serving as a Captain in the Royal Field Artillery TF. He was
accepted for pilot training by the RFC in January 1915.

Having
completed his flying training he was sent to France in April 1915
and was assigned to No. 2 Squadron equipped with BE2's. He later
served with No.s 27 and 62 Squadrons deploying with them to France on
their first operational tours.

This
record is compiled from Major Smith's 1915 diary, his pilots log
book 1915-1917, his photographs and a No. 62 Squadron history
together with additional research. It concentrates on his
initial training and his time in France. When he was assigned to Home
Establishment he was involved in flight instruction as a Flight
Commander and then as a Squadron Commander with No.s 24 and 3 Reserve
Air Squadrons.

Major
Smith accumulated 200 hours flying in France with No.s 2 and 27
Squadrons in 1915 and 1916 on BE2s and Martinsyde Elephants. He
returned to France in 1918 in command of No. 62 Squadron equipped
with Bristol Fighters.

Major
Smith survived the war and after the cessation of hostilities, his
Squadron moved to Belgium. He was released from service at the end of
February 1919 and turned down an offer to go to Australia to join the
AFC preferring to return home to civilian life to help run the family
engineering business. He was mentioned in FM Haigh's July 1919
despatches for his service in the RAF between September 1918 and
March 1919.

The
site is organised in sections covering Major Smith's postings during
the war. A separate page provides a short background on the RFC
in France. The editor would welcome contact with anyone interested in
the units mentioned and any comments on the photographic record.

Extracts
from the RFC and RAF communiqués are from three books
published by Christopher Cole (2) and Chaz Bowyer (1) covering
1915-18. For other references click here .

St
Omer Appeal to commemorate the British and Commonwealth airmen
who served in France during the First World War.